Alexandre Mars is a French entrepreneur, philanthropist and author.[1]
Entrepreneurship
In 1992, at the age of 17 and while still in high school, Alexandre Mars started his first venture organizing concerts.[2] The money he earned allowed him, along with a friend, to launch A2X,[3] one of the first French web agencies, when he was 22. He sold the company in 1998 and launched his venture capital firm.
In 2002, Mars created Phonevalley, a mobile advertising and marketing agency that he sold to Publicis in 2007.[4]
In 2006, he started ScrOOn, a platform specialized in social media that he sold to Blackberry in 2013.[2]
Philanthropic activities
In 2014, he created the non-profit Epic Foundation, which selects and funds organizations that fight childhood and youth inequality in areas like education, health, safety, and social and professional reinsertion.[2][5] The foundation develops giving solutions for companies and individuals. Its operational costs are entirely financed by Mars to the amount of more than $2 million annually, thanks to the revenues generated by his venture capital firm blisce/, which invests in startups like Spotify and Pinterest.[6]
Awards and honors
In 2015, Alexandre Mars was named among the “Top 20 Philanthropists Under 40” by The New York Observer.[1]
In 2018, as President of the Commission for Sports and Society during Paris’s Olympic bid, Alexandre Mars was chosen by Tony Estanguet, Chairman of the Paris Organising Committee, to serve as a board member and ambassador for the 2024 Olympics & Paralympic Games.[5]
Personal information
Alexandre Mars is married and has four children.
Notable works
- OSE : TOUT LE MONDE PEUT DEVENIR ENTREPRENEUR, FLAMMARION, 2020[7]
- Giving: Purpose is the New Currency, HarperOne/HarperCollins, 2019[8]
- La Révolution du partage, Flammarion, 2018[9]
References
- ^ a b Staff (1 April 2015). "The Top 20 Philanthropists Under 40". The New York Observer. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
- ^ a b c Murray, Sarah (4 June 2015). "Alexandre Mars: High-tech philanthropist looks to tap the wealth of entrepreneurs". Financial Times. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
- ^ Patrelle, Jérémy (4 May 2016). "Alexandre Mars, le smart philanthrope français". GQ Magazine. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
- ^ Aditham, Kiram (18 October 2013) "Alexandre Mars Out at Publicis?" AgencySpy
- ^ a b Salman, Saba (29 November 2016). "Interview: Alexandre Mars: States don't have the money to do good. Business does". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 December 2016.
- ^ Ha, Anthony (28 April 2016). "Apps: charity donations Epic Foundation's new app helps donors understand where their money is going". Techcrunch. Retrieved 5 January 2017.
- ^ Mars, Alexandre (January 2020). OSE : TOUT LE MONDE PEUT DEVENIR ENTREPRENEUR (First ed.). Paris. ISBN 978-2081421615.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Mars, Alexandre (31 December 2018). Giving : purpose is the new currency (First ed.). New York, NY. ISBN 9780062912404. OCLC 1049795666.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Mars, Alexandre (2018). La révolution du partage. Paris: Flammarion. ISBN 9782081439474. OCLC 1038706211.